Navigating to the Decision Reply Form

Once an applicant is fully admitted to the Graduate School (not just recommended to the program), the applicant will be able to fill out a Decision Reply Form in the application Status Page.

An applicant can navigate to the Decision Reply Form, following these directions:

1. Log in to your application portal at https://gradapply.wisc.edu/apply/
2. Select the Graduate Application link to enter into the Status Page
3. Scroll down to the Forms section near the bottom of the Status Page
4. Select the Decision Reply Form link, which will open a form like the examples in the screenshot below:
   
   

Effects of the Decision Reply Form

Accepting the offer of admission

If the applicant submits a Decision Reply Form accepting the offer of admission, the application's decision status will be updated to Admit/Accept. Once matriculation begins for a term, the applicant will be set up to be matriculated for the entry term, and the application's decision status will be updated to Admit/Matric.

Declining the offer of admission

If the applicant submits a Decision Reply Form declining the offer of admission, the application's decision status will be updated to Admit/Decline. 

If the applicant responds before being matriculated, the applicant will not be matriculated (unless matriculated to a different program).

If the applicant responds after being matriculated, the Office of the Registrar will be informed, and the student will be unmatriculated.

Not submitting the form

If the applicant never submits the form, the application's decision status will remain at Admit. Once matriculation begins for a term, the applicant will be set up to be matriculated for the entry term, and the application's decision status will be updated to Admit/Matric (exactly the same as if accepting the offer of admission).

How can I check if an applicant has accepted or denied the offer of admission?

Look up an individual's decision status by searching for the application in Slate

Search for the applicant in Slate and navigate to the appropriate Application Tab. The application status will be listed right at the top, as shown in the screenshot below:

The different statuses for an admitted student are defined below:

• Admit: applicant has been admitted but has not filled out the decision reply form
• Admit/Accept: applicant has been admitted and has accepted the offer of admission in the Decision Reply Form
• Admit/Decline: applicant has been admitted but has declined the offer of admission in the Decision Reply Form
• Admit/Matric: applicant has been admitted and is now matriculated for the term

Use the Homepage queries to check decision status of multiple admitted applicants

The fastest way to see the admissions decision status of multiple applicants is by running a Homepage query. The queries that will provide this information are the queries listed below, which can be found in the After Admission/Denial/Withdrawal section:

• All admitted applications (G11, G12, G13): This query will pull a list of each of your applicants that has been through the review process and admitted to the Graduate School, including reentry students (G12). Note that this query will also include applicants that have withdrawn after being admitted.
• Applicants who have ACCEPTED offer of admission: This query will pull a list of all of your applicants that have been admitted and have accepted the offer of admission.
• Applicants who have NOT RESPONDED to offer of admission: This query will pull a list of applicants that have been offered admission to your program but have not yet responded to the offer.
• Applicants who have DENIED offer of admission: This query will pull a list of applicants that have been offered admission to your program and have denied that offer.

The applicant's decision status will be listed in the Latest Decision column, as shown in the example below:

By reviewing the data in the Latest Decision and Decision Date columns, you can understand the different admission statuses, as described below:

Hermione Granger:

• Latest Decision: shows that Hermione has been admitted (but has not decided whether to attend or not)
• Decision Date: shows that Hermione was admitted on October 25, 2024

Neville Longbottom:

• Latest Decision: shows that Neville was admitted and denied the offer of admission in his status portal
• Decision Date: shows that Neville denied the offer of admission on October 31, 2024

Harry Potter:

• Latest Decision: shows that Harry has been admitted and has since been matriculated
• Decision Date: shows that Harry was matriculated on October 24, 2024

Ron Weasley:

• Latest Decision: shows that Ron was admitted and accepted the offer of admission in his status portal
• Decision Date: shows that Ron accepted the offer of admission on October 31, 2024